Most scientists believe that the solar system was formed when a cloud of gas
and dust from previous generations of stars collapsed some 4-1/2 billion years
ago, forming the Sun, planets, comets and asteroids. Exactly how that
transformation took place both intrigues and mystifies scientists.

The Genesis mission will provide more clues by collecting samples of the
solar wind, material flowing outward from the Sun. Comparing them with known
compositions of the planets will help in the effort to understand our cosmic
origins.

Following launch August 8, 2001, the Genesis spacecraft headed toward an
orbit around L1, a point between Earth and the Sun where the gravity of both
bodies is balanced. Genesis will unfurl its collector arrays and begin
collecting particles of the solar wind that will imbed themselves in specially
designed high purity wafers. After two years, the sample collectors will be
re-stowed and returned to Earth for a mid-air recovery of the sample return
capsule.

Genesis was competitively selected under NASA's Discovery Program which
sponsors low-cost missions with highly focused science goals. Managed by JPL,
the project is led by Principal Investigator Dr. Donald Burnett of the
California Institute of Technology. Lockheed Martin Astronautics designed and
built the spacecraft.